Historian: I believe the movements led by the distraught laborers post-WWI played a role in the emergence of the anti-communist network in America. Anti-communism has been around in America ever since the 1870’s. Before the Great War, labor movements were very well-known and stirred up lots of trouble for big corporations and the United States government. Workers were willing to risk their jobs to help make a difference, which is why they were so dangerous. Once the war began, the movements started to get out of hand in the eyes of the United States government. The labor movements were closing down factories which were very important …show more content…
The message that these workers were trying to send was interpreted differently by the United States government. What made these strikes much different that the previous was because of an event that occurred a couple years beforehand, the Bolshevik Revolution.
Me: What happened during the Bolshevik Revolution?
Historian: The Bolshevik Revolution was a conflict that occurred within Russian society towards the end of WW1. It was a successful revolution led by the Bolshevik party that targeted the Bourgeoisie government. The Bolsheviks stood for the Russian working class and their interests, and fought to end the exploitation of the working class Proletariats by the upper class Bourgeoisie. The Bolsheviks saw their chance at revolution towards the end of WWI once the Russian government was at its weakest.
Me: Why would this have an impact on the governments view of the labor movements going on in …show more content…
government take to combat these union movements to preserve American society from communism?
Historian: The United States government took extreme measures to prevent a Bolshevik-like revolution in America. They were well known for teaming up with the media and spreading propaganda across the country to gain support from its citizens. They linked motives behind these labor movements to things like being “pro-Germany”, radicalism and communism. They created conspiracy’s about foreign immigrants by saying that they came to the country to spread communism and topple the government. They did there best to strike fear in the average American to gain their support, and they did succeed.
After some bombings targeting high-ranking officials in the United States government, the government seemed to take a more hands-on approach to combatting communism. The government teamed up with the Bureau of Investigation, and had them profile thousands of Americans along with immigrants that they suspected to pose a threat. A large number of these profiled people were those associated with labor movements. The government then conducted an event known as the Palmer Raids, where the Bureau raided suspected radical organizations and arrested thousands of people. Those that were arrested were charged with outrageous offenses, and those that were immigrants were deported from the country. These efforts all played a part in strengthening the anti-communist